Anima þat lady  is ladde — by hire ......leringM.9.16: For hire all other B manuscripts read his; for the final word, B manuscripts vary between leryng and lernyng.

M.9.17KD.9.17

Ac þe Constable of þat Castell  þat .kepuþ alle þe wacche

...?...# quia Inwitt habet quinque Filios vt patet

M.9.18KD.9.18

I...s a wys kniȝte with-alle  sire Inwitte...?...he hiȝte .

M.9.19KD.9.19

And hath fyue faire sones  bi his furste wiff .

M.9.20KD.9.20

Sire sewell and saiwell  and herewell þe heende

M.9.21KD.9.21

Sire worche well with þine hande  a wiȝte man of stren....gthe

M.9.22KD.9.22

And sire Godfrey gowell  grete lordus for soþe .

M.9.23KD.9.23

Þes fiue ben sette  to saue þis lady anima

...?...M.9.24: Something, no longer legible even under the ultraviolet lamp, has been erased from the margin.

M.9.24KD.9.24

Til kynde come or seende .  to saue hire for euere .

M.9.25KD.9.25

What kinnes thinge is kyndeM.9.25: All other B manuscripts, and some C manuscripts, here include quod I, but it is not in A manuscripts.  canst þow me telle .

# quod natura est Creator omnium rerum

M.9.26KD.9.26

Kynde quod witte — is aM.9.26: Kane and Donaldson record both M and R as omitting this a, which they reject as unauthorial, but without noting that the a, attested in all other B manuscripts, is clearly legible under an erasure in both manuscripts. creatour  of alle kynnes þinges

M.9.27KD.9.27

Fadur and fourmer of al  þat euere was makude

M.9.28KD.9.28

And þisM.9.28: M's reading of þis is not shared by other B manuscripts, most of which read þat. is þe grete god  þat gynnynge ha.d neuere .

M.9.29KD.9.29

Lord of lif and of liȝte  of blisseM.9.29: With the alteration of lisse to blisse, M joins BCrGRF. and of peine

M.9.30KD.9.30

Angeles and alle þinge  arne at his wille

# quia dixit & facta sunt mandauit & Creata sunt

M.9.31KD.9.31

Ac man is him moost like  of marke and of shafte

M.9.32KD.9.32

For þor..hgh þe worde . þat he spake  wexen forth beestus .

M.9.33KD.9.33α

Dixit & facta sunt & ceteraM.9.33: Kane and Donaldson fail to note the & cetera at the end of this tag, which is overlapped by the right end of the box that surrounds this text.

Þe lettre for al.. þe lordshipe  I leue worthM.9.41: M's reading of worth is not shared by other B manuscripts, most of which read were. neuere y-makud .

M.9.42KD.9.42

And so it bisemethM.9.42: For M's bisemeth most other B manuscripts read semeþ. bi him  as þe bible telleth .

# quia non solum verbo sed opere facta sunt

M.9.43KD.9.43

Þere he saide dixit & facta sunt. & ceteraM.9.43: The & cetera has been added in a different hand and ink. This addition brings M into agreement with GY.

M.9.44KD.9.44

He moste w.erche with his wordusM.9.44: M alone among B manuscripts attests the plural.  and his witte shewe

M.9.45KD.9.45

And in þis manere was man ma..ad  þor....ghmimyȝte of go.d almiȝty

M.9.46KD.9.46

With his word. and werkemanshippe  and with lif to laste .

M.9.47KD.9.47

And þus god gauef him a goost  of þe godhede of heuene .

M.9.48KD.9.48

And of his grete grace  grauntede him blisse

M.9.49KD.9.49

And þat is lif þat ay shal laste  to al linage aftur

M.9.50KD.9.50

And þat is þe Castell þat kynde made  Caro it hatte

# the makyng off man with the sowle

M.9.51KD.9.51

And is as muche to mene  as man with a soule .

M.9.52KD.9.52

And þat he wrouȝte with werke  and with worde boþe

M.9.53KD.9.53

Þourgh miȝte of þe mageste  man was y-makude

M.9.54KD.9.54

Inwit.. and alle wittus  closud ben þere-innnee

M.9.55KD.9.55

For loue of þe .Lady anima  þat lif is y-nempnede

M.9.56KD.9.56

Ouere-al in mann..es body  he wawethM.9.56: Most B manuscripts have walkeþ, though F has walweþ. The reading waweth is not shared with other B manuscripts, though it is the majority reading of A manuscripts; others have walweth. See MEDs.v.walwen (OE walwian), "to roll over," and wawen (OE wagian) "to go back and forth." See also the variants at M.8.41. an.d wandreth

M.9.57KD.9.57

AyM.9.57: The scribe originally wrote A as a form of And, the reading of W, and another hand has filled the space after the initial letter to read Ay, a reading not elsewhere attested. Other B manuscripts read Ac or But. in þe herte is hire home  and hire mooste reste

Is moost yhatud vponM.9.107: M's original reading of vp was shared by CLR. erthe  of hem þat ben in heuene

M.9.108KD.9.103

M.9.108: As a result of eyeskip on heuene (M.9.107 and M.9.109), the scribe initially omitted M.9.108-109. The missing lines were then written in the right margin
next to M.9.110-111. Subsequently, a line of text was erased at the bottom of the folio and the two omitted lines were supplied
there, the corrector labeling lines 108-111 with the letters a-d to indicate their proper order, and the marginal correction
was erased. No other B manuscript omitted these two lines.a. And sithen to spille speche  þat enspiredM.9.108: M shares with Cr the reading enspired. Other B manuscripts read spire, spicerie or spicere. Kane and Donaldson note that the word is "over erasure another hand." While it is true that the entirety of lines M.9.108-109
is written as an addition at the bottom of the leaf in another ink, and that a line has been erased to make space for line
108, the individual word enspired is consistent in hand and ink with the rest of this addition. is of grace

M.9.109KD.9.104

b And goddes gleman  and a game of heueneM.9.109: The erasures on the right margin of this paragraph are still partly legible. Under ultraviolet light and a game of heuene is clear.

In erthe andþein heuene is —M.9.126: M's original reading In erthe þe heuene is agreed with YHmGOCBL. The addition of and and in and the erasure of þe and is brings M into agreement with WCr.  him-self was þe wittnesse .

# contra hos qui concipiuntur absque matrimonio

M.9.127KD.9.121

Ac false folke faithe—les  theues and liers .

M.9.128KD.9.122

Wastours and wrecches  out of wedlok y trowe .

M.9.129KD.9.123

Conceiued ben in .yuel tyme  as Caym was on Eeue .

M.9.130KD.9.125

Of suche synneful shrewes  þe sautier makeþ mynde

M.9.131KD.9.125α

Concepit in dolore & peperit iniquitatem. & cetera .

M.9.132KD.9.126

And alle þat come of þat Caym  come ...to yuele ende .

M.9.133KD.9.127

For god sente to Seem  and saide bi an angel

M.9.134KD.9.128

Þin issue . in þin issue  I wol þat þei be wedd..ed

M.9.135KD.9.129

And nouȝt þiny kynde with Caymes  ycoupled ...neneM.9.135: The ne is written over an erasure, with the erased correction above. WCr read nor; Hm has ner. spoused .

Al shal deie for his dedus  by dales andM.9.149: M shares the reading and with R; other B manuscripts have and by. hullus

M.9.150KD.9.143

And þe foules þat f..leen  forth with oþur beestus .

M.9.151KD.9.144

E.xcepte onliche of  iche kinde a couple

M.9.152KD.9.145

Þat in þiny shinglede shippe  shullen ben ysaued

nota

M.9.153KD.9.146

Here abouȝte þe barne  þe belsires gultus

M.9.154KD.9.147

And alle for hire forfadres  þei ferden þe worse

M.9.155KD.9.148

Þe gospell is here aȝein  in o degre I fynde .

M.9.156KD.9.149

Filius non portabit iniquitatem patris . & pater non portabit iniquitatem & ceteraM.9.156: Various B manuscripts end this Latin tag at various points. M's ending is unique, though it lacks only filij after iniquitatem in order to agree with the fullest version of the line.

It is .an vncomelyM.9.173: This insertion in M occurs at a place where B manuscripts attest a variety of readings. M's altered state agrees with most B manuscripts. L has comely with on added above the line. couple  bi Crist as me thinkeþ .

M.9.174KD.9.166

To ȝyeuen a ȝyonge wenche  to an olde fieble

M.9.175KD.9.167

Or wedden any widowe  for welthe of hire godus

M.9.176KD.9.168

Þat neuere shal barne bere  but it be in armes

M.9.177KD.9.170

Many a paire siþþen þe pestilence  han pliȝte hem to-gedres

nota

M.9.178KD.9.171

Þe fruit þat þei bringe forth  arne foule wordus .

#

M.9.179KD.9.169

In ialousie ioieles  and ianglinge on bedde .

M.9.180KD.9.172

Haue þei none children but cheeste  and ...?...chidyngeM.9.180: M's reading of chidynge is not shared by other B manuscripts, which attest this word variously. It does, however appear as a variant of cheeste in A manuscripts (K.10.193). hem bitwene

# Bacoun off dunmow

M.9.181KD.9.173

And ..þough þei don hem to Duonmowe  but ȝif þe deuel helpe

M.9.182KD.9.174

To folwen aftur þe Fliss.cche  fecche þei it neuere

M.9.183KD.9.175

And but þei boþe be forsworne  þat bacoun....tyneget they neuyr .M.9.183: M's altered b-verse is unique; the original reading was probably that of all other B manuscripts, which read þat bacoun þei tyne. See the Introduction, II.1.